Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Professional Watches Switzerland’s highest revenue watchmaker is reportedly close to signing a deal to build a fourth production facility — to expand capacity beyond one million timepieces annually Based on a report from Swissinfo.ch on November 22, 2022, that used Swiss public television station RTS as its source Rolex will potentially close on the two plots of land it needs to build a new production facility in Bulle The proposed site size totals around 100,000 square meters which equates to over 1,076,391 square feet (almost 25 acres) The potential size of the facility — which could be completed as soon as 2029 — could be massive And preliminary speculation suggests that 2,000 new jobs will be created if everything goes as planned Rolex is owned by the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation and is known to make long-term decisions irrespective of investors because it has none. In other related news this week, Rolex announced its official certified pre-owned program which is notable because even though they’re not the first watch brand to create such a program the decision is sure to cause a ripple effect across the industry — due to the company’s position as a thought leader Professional Watches reached out to Rolex for comment on Thursday and has not received a reply we’ll likely know the official status of the project later this month With Rolex demand at record highs — and supply still not fulfilling demand — Rolex clearly needs more production capacity and has the capital as well as the support of local government to make this project a reality and it looks as though that’s all coming to fruition “A project of exceptional magnitude is on track in Bulle with the prestigious company Rolex,” declared Oliver Curty adding that the authorities would “ensure that it succeeds.” Jason is a writer and photographer who founded Professional Watches to share his passion for watches WATCHPRO USA Rolex has confirmed it is speeding up the expansion of its manufacturing capacity with three temporary facilities capable of boosting production by 2025 Rolex is rapidly ramping up its manufacturing capacity by opening both temporary and permanent facilities in Switzerland The company revealed last year it is investing over $1 billion in a major new factory in Bulle president of the state council for Friburg described the Rolex plan as a “Project of a rare scale” Adding: “This significant investment will create very many jobs The project is on the right track and the Friborg authorities will do everything to ensure that it succeeds” adding around 2,000 employees to the current Rolex headcount of 30,000 is expected to be completed and on stream by 2029 with demand for Rolex watches at an unprecedented high the watchmaker is adding manufacturing capacity even faster with three temporary facilities capable of adding capacity by 2025 A report by Bloomberg‘s Andy Hoffman reveals that production will be increased gradually as the pop-up facilities come online and a workforce of up to 300 is recruited and trained It is not clear which watchmaking disciplines will be housed in each of the new plants Rolex has consistently maintained it will never compromise on the quality of its watchmaking as it works to increase capacity amid a global imbalance between supply and demand “Our current production cannot meet the existing demand in an exhaustive way at least not without reducing the quality of our watches – something we refuse to do as the quality of our products must never be compromised,” a statement from Rolex in 2021 said Construction of all four new temporary and permanent Rolex facilities will start later this year Rolex currently has four major facilities in Switzerland: its administrative headquarters and assembly operation in Geneva; a factory in Plan-les-Ouates making watch cases and bracelets; Chêne-Bourg cerachrom bezels and bezel inserts; and Bienne is the beating heart of the operation to manufacture movements How To Wear It The Cartier Tank Cintrée In-Depth Examining Value And Price Over Time With The ‘No Date’ Rolex Submariner Watches In The Wild The Road Through America, Episode 1: A Model Of Mass Production we go inside all of Rolex's factories in Switzerland I will begin this detailed article with a wholly unsurprising admission I own more of them than any other watch from any other manufacturer and I have always believed its contribution to watchmaking is beyond measure There is and was a distinct difference between the Rolex of today and the Rolex of yesterday and I don’t think it would come as a surprise to anyone if I said I preferred that of yesterday that doesn’t mean I don’t have great respect for the Rolex of today nor would it prevent me from encouraging family and readers to look to the Crown for a new watch today  When my only sister gave birth to her first son I purchased him a brand new Rolex and engraved his initials on the back depending on how moody he is at 18) after years of wear by his mother And that’s indisputably the most wonderful thing about a Rolex from my own perspective – they are unbelievably accurate One of the most iconic Rolex watches to date – the "Paul Newman" Daytona In this special HODINKEE feature of Inside The Manufacture I will recount a four day experience that completely changed my perspective on the world's most important watch maker – the time that I got to spend inside all four of Rolex's actual production facilities in Switzerland others could not have been further from the truth you'll hear and see what it is like to go inside Rolex in a way that few have Rolex is one of the few watch manufactures that has two completely separate but totally equal strengths – an amazing history of innovation in really meaningful watchmaking; and world-class manufacturing capabilities today and while many within the industry know why and how Rolex became Rolex I feel we should cover a few of the basics for a broader audience Hans Wilsdorf was born in in Bavaria in 1881 but would become fascinated by English culture Wilsdorf created "Wilsdorf & Davis," specializing in the distribution of wristwatches in the United Kingdom (this at a time when watches sold were overwhelmingly pocket watches) precise movements required for a wristwatch – not a common thing back then at all – and would actually become Montres Rolex Aegler supplied movements to many other companies The first certificate of accuracy ever presented to a wristwatch - circa 1910 The first "Class A" certificated ever awarded to a wristwatch by the Kew Observatory  - circa 1914 Wilsdorf was obsessive, and the very first target he set his eyes on was chronometric performance – but for a wristwatch. Up until this point, the most accurate watches in the world were pocket watches because, few were paying much attention to wristwatches. Wilsdorf changed all that when he submitted one of this Aegler-powered watches to the Official Watch Rating Center in Bienne, Switzerland – something of a predecessor to COSC – in 1910 and was the very first wristwatch to be awarded this certificate and you'll notice that the manufacture name is not Wilsdorf though it was housed in a Wilsdorf & Davis watch Wilsdorf submitted another wristwatch to the Kew observatory in the United Kingdom relative to even its Swiss and French counterparts conducted the most stringent accuracy tests on watches in the world while most tests were conducted over fifteen days responsible for testing marine chronometers for the British Navy before sending them to vessels going to sea there was no such thing as GPS or digital technology and a marine chronometer was nothing short of absolutely vital to navigation The Rolex watch (Wilsdorf adopted the "Rolex" name in 1908 because it was short and possible to inscribe elegantly on both the dial and movement of watch) performed exceptionally well when tested This Rolex was the very first wristwatch in the world to achieve such performance – up until this point only true Marine Chronometers had been worthy of the mark Let's get into a quick little aside about around the Kew A certificate you saw above We know that Wilsdorf submitted the one watch to Kew in 1914 and it received an observatory chronometer grade It means that this watch operates on a completely different plane than a traditional mechanical watch the former technical director of Patek Philippe had this to say: An Observatory Chronometer Is To Watches What A Formula One Engine Is To Cars Not only are observatory chronometer wristwatches incredibly  accurate So not only do these Kew A certified watches have the observatory certified movements they are also among the rarest Rolex watches around and he considers it one of the finest and most special watches in his collection I would hold out and try to find one with an original dial – though you will likely be waiting a long An example of the first Rolex Oyster watch Wilsdorf had moved Rolex to Geneva not only to be closer to all of his suppliers recognized that Geneva held a special place in the minds of watch consumers was officially formed and it was then that the Rolex we know today really began to take shape Not only had Wilsdorf been effective in producing highly precise calibers small enough for the wrist but his attention was now also set on taking the watch to sport by making it waterproof Becuse while the pocket watch was indeed used for sport could and should be used not by only a spectator which would truly revolutionize the wristwatch and the watch was as water-resistant as one had ever been A little known fact is that the fluted nature of the bezel that has become something of a Rolex trademark was indeed first created to serve a purpose – the ridged nature allowed the bezel to be tightly screwed into those early oyster cases The bezel of a Royal oyster is no longer screwed into the mid-case but we still see fluted bezels on several of Rolex's most iconic designs While Rolex's manufacturing and design capabilities were (and still are) the reason that this company is so respected by its peers it was Wilsdorf's knack for storytelling that would would elevate Rolex to become the archetype of the luxury wristwatch not only for those within Switzerland Wilsdorf heard of a woman British woman named Mercedes Gleitze who had successfully swum the English Channel Wilsdorf asked Gleitze to wear a Rolex Oyster watch around her neck as she swam It should be noted that Gleitze had attempted this feat seven times before making it successfully due an attempt by another woman to steal the spotlight It was this last time that Gleitze wore the Rolex Oyster In spite of Gleitze's failed attempt in the so-called "vindication swim," Wilsdorf's advertisements made the typist a celebrity She would be used in Rolex advertisements for years the very first Rolex brand ambassador and one of the earliest and most successful brand ambassadors in general one of the most important partnerships in not only Rolex history We would see Wilsdorf adopt this model from Gleitze forward The third tenet of Wilsdorf's master plan to make the most versatile, sellable watch on the planet was to make one that would power itself. Rolex would not be the first to make an automatic watch, but it wasn't the first to make a waterproof case, either. In the same way that Apple is seldom first to launch a product, Rolex would observe, study, and improve. For example, have you ever heard of Harwood John Harwood actually patented the self-winding watch some years before Rolex did – 1924 vs 1931 – but let's just say the Harwood brand hasn't enjoyed the same success as Rolex The difference between Harwood's concept and the Oyster Perpetual was that Harwood's idea was to use a "hammer" winding system while Rolex's system would use a weighted rotor turning through a full circle Rolex's invention has gone on to become the industry standard – just another reason why Rolex is Rolex Rolex continued to innovate through the middle of the century with the introduction of both the Datejust in 1945 which was the very first wrist chonometer to feature the date of the month not on the dial but in a window which was the first wristwatch to show both the day and date on the dial They are now two of the most imitated watches on Earth Rolex had created watches that can be worn every day without much fuss or attention But it is with 1953's Submariner that we see an entirely new type of Rolex a type that will come to define not only its own brand watches in general – the "Professional" watch These are the watches that millions have since adopted as part of their every day outfit – including the Submariner It's hard to find the proper adjectives to describe the Submariner It's a watch that can both begin and end a collection It's awatch that you can wear every single day of your life and not worry about or it's the watch you can put in a safe and have it rise in value year after year In the countless discussions I've shared with my colleague Eric Wind When my mind thinks of the word 'watch,' it is a Submariner I see The Sub has taken on a larger persona than other dive watches even those with amazing history to boast of in their own right actually pre-dated the Submariner by one Baselworld) or Omega's Seamaster The Submariner series began with the reference 6204 which would later be replaced by an 8 mm crown that would become a collector icon While the watch above doesn't look like what many of us think of as an Explorer, or even say "Explorer" on the dial, it is the patriarch of the line. The story goes that Sir Edmund Hillary brought with him an Explorer as he summited Everest for the first time – however that is only half true. He did indeed wear a Rolex, but it was this watch which we saw on display in the Beyer Museum but something that would help define what an Explorer would become A true Rolex Explorer of both yesterday and today is defined by a black dial with a large triangle at 12 The dial is marked with dashes except for at 3 Below is a rare reference 6610 with tropical dial though most collectors tend to think of the 1016 The Explorer today is slightly larger at 39 mm but retains many of the same characteristics of the original the underdog of the Rolex tool-watch collection but truly the most versatile as its smaller size allows it to be dressed up with a nice strap an Explorer 14270 was my very first Rolex ever while the steel model features a black-and-blue bezel One of the most overlooked Rolex sport watches is the Milgauss Created to be worn by scientists and technicians at CERN (the European Center for Nuclear Research which today is home to the Large Hadron Collider) and elsewhere the Milgauss was one of the first mainstream watches with anti-magnetic properties It was not a commercial success at all and languished in jewelers' display cases for years before it was revived in the mid-2000's to much fanfare The Rolex Daytona now features an excellent in-house column-wheel chronograph caliber that I'll dive into more below he left the ownership of Rolex to the non-profit organization he created in 1945 – the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation The Foundation is still around and its members still retain 100% ownership of this multi-billion dollar company one of the largest charitable organizations in Europe It was under his guidance that Rolex became the completely vertically integrated master of quality that it is today Rolex began acquiring every supplier they could – including legendary bracelet maker Gay Freres The completely informal arrangement between Rolex Bienne and Rolex Geneva would be formalized when the Wilsdorf Foundation acquired the ownership of Bienne from the Borel family which happened much more recently than you might think: Rolex Geneva didn't purchase Bienne until 2004 Though owned by completely separate entities Rolex Bienne And Rolex Geneva worked together exclusively for over 70 years It is interesting to note that in Jack Heuer's biography the patriarch and modern leader of Heuer (now TAG Heuer) tells of a time when his company was in trouble and Mr Heiniger who didn't see the future Rolex using Heuer's electronics business Heuer further revealed that Rolex Bienne actually acquired almost 50% of his company when it went public in the late '60s – imagine if this acquistion had been approved by Heiniger back then Rolex and Heuer could have been joined forces and today the competitive landscape would be very different Patrick Heiniger's initiative to control the entire production process of Rolex has left the company today with four main facilities and it is these four absolutely state-of-the-art locations to which I was invited What I saw within the halls of Rolex wasn't like either; it was like seeing something brand new being made I will say that all photos below have been provided by Rolex – I was not allowed to take my own While I certainly would've liked to shoot my own Rolex has more to lose than anyone in terms of quality and production knowledge The facility that is most associated with Rolex is Les Acacias (it's situated across the Arve River from Geneva) This building serves as its international headquarters and houses all senior executives I absolutely did not get to go inside) and is the final point in the Rolex watch production line and development takes place – it is the hub of Rolex Inaugurated in 1965 and updated in 2002 and 2006 Rolex HQ consists of two 10-floor production units It is the only of the four Rolex facilities that features a façade in the trademark Rolex green the work being done here consists of final assembly along with several stages of final quality control It was here that I first realized just how wrong my – and many of my peers' – preconceptions were about Rolex I had been told by several watch industry insiders including presidents at very well known brands that Rolex produces watches completely devoid of the human touch As soon as I stepped into the watchmaking room Dozens of assemblymen and women line the absolutely pristine rooms these rooms are more than pristine – they are called "Controlled Environment Zones" and are totally dust and humidity free Here the watch will see the last 10 or so steps of assembly This includes placing many of the components from the other three facilities into the watch Rolex is arguably one of the most vertically integrated watch manufacture in the world and it makes just about every component of the watch itself are the hands – which come from a supplier called Fiedler SA – and crystals The first thing I notice when I step inside Rolex is just how many people there are You'll see dials and hands being set into the watch and serial numbers being entered into a global database that allows Rolex to track the flow of each and every watch Each group in the final assembly facility is totally autonomous and they work on two to three month rotations but ensuring that the hands rotate with the right amount of tension as well as ensuring they will clear the glass in the right way a watchmaker will take as much time as necessary to ensure there is not a single speck of dust anywhere inside the watch One of the final steps is to replace the temporary crown of the movement placed in by COSC After final assembly is completed and a watch actually looks like a watch they are turned  over to final control for what can only be described as a downright shockingly intense set of tests It should be noted the full watches go into final control – not just movements The three focuses of these tests are exactly what you would expect from founder Hans Wilsdorf's three goals in watchmaking: precision The Oyster test submerges each watch into real-life conditions – or pressurized tanks that simulate the guaranteed depth of each model with an additional margin of 10 percent for good measure They're actually tested to an additional 25 percent margin in a special machine designed by no one short of Rolex's historical partner in dive-watch badassery Less than 0.1 percent of watches tested show any issues at all After the waterproofness test and self-winding module examination the completed watches are set into boxes of 10 for a rigorous 24-hour accuracy test the watches are photographed – exactly 24 hour later the watches will be photographed again the watch will be sent back for further adjustment For all those watches that make it through this final stage of testing they will be placed into a completely proprietary Rolex shipping container for distribution to their destination markets Plans-les-Ouates (an industrial park outside Geneva that's also home to and Vacheron Constantin) is where the Rolex of our collective imagination comes to reality – complete with robotic inventory machines straight out of Star Wars Rolex Plan-les-Ouates is the largest of all Rolex facilities comprising six different wings that are 65 meters long by 30 meters wide by 30 meters high I should also note that everything you can see from the outside of the building is actually less than half of what Rolex has here – the complex is 11 stories high but you can only see five from the outside The other six are underground and completely hidden from a casual observer's eye Here there are not only no cameras allowed inside but we are also asked to surrender our mobile phones the core of Rolex's competitive advantage and unlike any other Swiss (German or Japanese) watchmaking facility on the planet It may actually be completely unique in other industries too Upon entry (and surrender of all digital device) we take a small elevator a few floors underground The doors open to reveal what looks to be something akin to Dr Access control points are everywhere – if someone doesn't absolutely need to be in a particular room We immediately notice a gigantic elevator door – and when I say gigantic I mean an elevator at a scale that I've never seen I inquire about it – it can hold a load of up to five tons We are shuffled into a secure room – we are about to see the legendary Rolex automated stock system Our guide places his eyes to the iris scanner (no lie) the doors slide open So what I will do is give you my best written description of what this absolutely extraordinary automated system looks like spliced by a network of rails totaling 1.5 kilometers transporting over 2,800 trays of components per hour between the 60,000 storage compartments and the workshops upstairs Once someone within the workshops above requests a component this incredible system takes just 6-8 minutes to retrieve it and deliver it to their work station I remember when I was in undergraduate business school our supply chain professional proclaimed Wal-Mart to be the model of professional logistics I would almost guarantee you he said that because he'd never been to Rolex Plans-les-Ouates where it creates its very own formulas for three different kinds of gold and its own formulation of 904L stainless steel Every single alloy used by Rolex is produced entirely in-house because the composition of the metal is the most important factor in determining a watch's aesthetic Rolex is able to make these special compounds because they have invested in something that few other watch companies would even dream of: a central laboratory with world-class experts in not only materials but also tribology – the science of friction This laboratory was truly extraordinary to see and what was perhaps most impressive about the lab was not only the incredible testing going on and the machines they've developed themselves (for example Rolex invented a machine to open and close an Oyster bracelet clasp 1,000 times in a matter of minutes) I was asked not to mention from where Rolex has retained many of its top-tier scientists and they are 100 percent not from the watch industry Rolex's ceramics department is also industry-leading and while we only really see it used on bezels so far the team is enthusiastic about its possibilities It is in this facility that I also saw something that I really never expected to see – a finishing department just without the traditional aesthetic flourishes that we as consumers tend to look for when we are examining haute horlogerie Cases are held against a polish wheel by humans just as they are at Jaeger-LeCoultre or Audemars Piguet there are between 50 and 60 people polishing the cases of Rolex watches The human element in Rolex watchmaking is more than substantial and very real Assembling the trademark Rolex Oyster and Jubilee bracelets is also done by hand with the assistance of some very clever guide templates – made completely in-house which is located to the northeast of Plan-les-Ouates along the border with France (but still only a short drive from Geneva proper) Rolex makes just about everything on its watches in its own special way – this includes dials but also printed and set with indexes and other elements The building is 10 stories in total but again while the numeral application (done by hand) and gem-setting (also by hand) takes place in bright-white rooms filled with sunlight At least 100 people are working on dial-setting at any given time Around 800 people work in the Chêne-Bourg Rolex facility and the work here is absolutely cutting edge paint was applied to the dial with Scotch tape – seriously – but now it is transferred with a special silicon pad made and over 60 operations must be completed before a dial is finished I think what was perhaps most surprising about my visit to Chene-Bourg was the quality of gemstone and setting work Rolex does I don't really think of Rolex producing many watches with diamonds and stones this is Rolex and if they are going to do something some of whom have names like Bulgari and Cartier on their resume Only IF quality – otherwise known as "internally flawless" for those not familiar with jewelry-speak One of the coolest things I saw here was a machine that Rolex uses to filter the stones they receive for fakes or anything that might not be what it's supposed to be One assumes that any supplier of Rolex understands just how big a business it is and might be tempted to take advantage of this perhaps by including fake diamonds in with the real stones Rolex has a machine in-house that can filter stones in mass to cull out anything that isn't a real diamond The machine costs tens of thousands of dollars so I asked how frequently they received a stone from a supplier that wasn't an actual diamond In contrast to the three Rolex manufacturing facilities in the outskirts of Geneva Rolex Bienne is located in the Jura Mountains north of Bern and just a stone's throw further along the mountains from the Vallée de Joux This region is arguably the heart of Swiss watchmaking and Bienne is the very heart of Rolex up until 2004 a completely separate company owned by the Borel family of the Aegler company – hard to believe if you're hearing it for the first time but indeed Rolex didn't own its own movement supplier until the Borel family sold it to Rolex Geneva in 2004 there isn't a location that is more Rolex than Bienne and going inside here is easily the most exclusive invitation in all of watchmaking The contents of this 92,000 square meter facility are This is the building everyone who loves watches Let's get one thing straight first – all Rolex calibers are completely made in-house to a degree matched by almost no other brand That doesn't mean Rolex doesn't employ some absolutely next-level machinery to get components to a point where the watchmakers can put together the movements Bienne does use a version of Rolex's in-house stocking system that I mentioned earlier is an image of the Bienne system along with a look at the beautiful interior of the facility The reason that Rolex allows so few people into the Bienne location is because they have created a truly unique manufacturing system for which they have built machines that create unique components exclusive to Rolex and steel are cut using proprietary machines unseen anywhere else in Switzerland Baseplates are produced at a rate of about 100 per minute There are stripping machines where raw metal is inserted in one end and out the other end comes full components with pins already in them and out the other end comes full components witih pins already in them There are machines in Bienne that are capable of doing the work of 100 traditional tools in a matter of 50 seconds It is also in Bienne that several components unseen elsewhere in watchmaking are produced This includes the Parachrom balance spring and the Paraflex Shock Absorber – two things that are essential to the accuracy and durability of Rolexes This balance spring was developed entirely by Rolex and is patented. Compose of a niobium-zirconium alloy, it can offer up to 10 times better accuracy than a traditional balance spring eliminating the need for anti-magnetic cages The process by which the Parachrom spring is created is daunting and the amount of work that goes into these springs is extraordinary Over 120 people are required to work in this department and each spring features a Breguet-type overcoil The tool that makes this final curve is proprietary to Rolex is an other completely new development from Rolex Rolex was left with a patented innovation that improved on traditional systems by over 50 percent there is indeed a difference between complicated and non-complicated watches Those calibers that are considered in the elite group of Rolex production are those from the Sky-Dweller Over 120 people work on these three watches alone with eight different cells of 15 people each has received numerous updates since its launch While my hosts that day don't say specifically what has been done to the 4130 since its launch Could it be that a watch company would actually spend the money and take the time to make a better product without shouting from the rooftops about it Could it be that a watch company would actually spend the money and take the time to make a better product without shouting from the rooftop about it but as Bienne was the last of the four Rolex facilities I visited I wanted to quickly express my thoughts about what I was thinking that day I admitted from the very beginning that I love Rolex and for the first time I found myself wanting to purchase a modern Rolex There is something so wonderful and undeniable about the purity of their mission – to create the longest lasting Rolex PR told me that the caliber 4130 from the modern Daytona was regularly updated since its launch with little to no communication to customers a lot of what we do at HODINKEE is fielding press releases from brands trying to create a story where there really isn't one Then I spoke to a friend who is an independent watchmaker – he does not work for Rolex but does in addition to watches from several other brands "Setting Dufour and Voutilainen level movement finishing aside Rolex's 3130 based calibers have reigned supreme for close to 30 years now No mass-produced movement outside of Rolex comes close to matching their quality They have come terribly close to defining the epitome of what a perfectly conceived mechanical watch movement should be." "Rolex took everything that was good about their 3130 series of movements and applied it to a chronograph critical look at how they could improve upon the design thinking behind the 3130 to make it even more reliable They looked at the weak points of the 4030 and determined how best they could improve on what they had learned from it Full balance bridge with height adjustment nut 4 Single point of adjustment for the chronograph system (versus five in the 4030) 5 Parachrome hairspring – I believe it was there from the beginning they kept the goodness that was already in the 4030 microstella balance wheel (which Rolex equips all of its modern calibers with)." Getting back to your reason for touching base: they have quietly been improving on the design since its debut at the turn of the millennium." He continued: "It is not unusual for Rolex to make incremental improvements to their calibers The 1500 series went through multiple iterations over its long history The 3000 series received small improvements All of the ladies' calibers have also seen small improvements over the years The upgrades to the 4130 haven't been mere tweaks "An 'upgrade' they did make some noise about was the blue Parachrom hairspring earlier 4130s were equipped with a white 'Parachrom' hairspring built on the same molecular foundation in light of cutbacks from Swatch Group and its subsidiaries like Nivarox it was important for Rolex to market this milestone in their vertical integration of production the Parachrom hairspring was a serious horological leap forward in terms of precision and reliability of timekeeping." "They made a small upgrade to the train wheel bridge modifying some of the components and the way that they operate upon it to improve the reliability of the hour and minute counters I would class this upgrade as being similar to the minor upgrades made to previous generations of Rolex movements." "A more notable upgrade that they introduced is a hairspring protection block which eliminates any possible risk of the lower coils of the hairspring tangling in the hairspring's overcoil when the watch endures a hard blow I have never seen anything like it from any other watch company It is stunningly brilliant in its simplicity and it does its job flawlessly While the wearer of a Daytona may never notice it's there they would quickly notice if it were not should the watch take a hard knock." "The biggest incognito upgrade are playless gears in the chronograph system. As I'm sure you already know, the vertical clutch system of the 4130 eliminates the jarring start of the second that can be noticed on chronographs that feature a lateral clutch when the chronograph is started. Playless gears take this to the next level, by eliminating backlash between gear teeth or 'play,' between the teeth of two gears that are interacting with one another so that one tooth can disengage as another tooth moves in to continue to the transfer of energy." "It is stunningly brilliant in its simplicity and it does its job flawlessly." "A certain amount of backlash is necessary in any traditional gear system to prevent the gear train from binding and locking up Unless the profiles of every single gear tooth are absolutely perfect (impossible) the spacing between the gears remains absolutely perfect (impossible) and there is zero play in the motion of the gears themselves (unlikely and inefficient) the tooth that is disengaging will become jammed between the tooth it is pushing and the tooth that is trailing it if there is no backlash using a process known as LiGa (lithography-galvanoplasty) LiGa makes it possible to create gear forms that would be impossible to realize using traditional machining tools." Rolex was able to devise a gear form wherein the center of each gear tooth can be hollowed out leaving behind two spring-like flanges that act as what would traditionally be the full tooth form both sides of the tooth can remain engaged with the gear it is interacting with throughout the entire duration of the tooth's transfer of energy taking up any necessary play (backlash) in the hollow area in the center of the tooth." "MB&F made some fuss about LiGa gears when they launched the HM2 That was the first time I had heard of this technology which Jean-Marc Wiederrecht / Agenhor employed for the retrograde minutes Little did I know then that Rolex had already rolled out this technology with the introduction of the Yacht-Master II earlier that year the technology was introduced as an upgrade to the Daytona several years later bringing absolutely fluid and seamless motion to the chronograph hands as they start and reset." "From its inception to its present incarnation I have yet to encounter another watch movement that comes close to matching the thoughtfulness and attention to detail so evident as in the 4130's design." Rolex's 4130 represents the pinnacle of horological engineering From its inception to its present incarnation I have yet to encounter another watch movement that comes close to matching the thoughtfulness and attention to detail so evident in the 4130's design." thought anything under the sun would make me want to own a modern Rolex everything old has so much character and charm The way the patina on the dial shows a life lived is simply inimitable by modern Rolex the appeal of vintage is always there – each watch has its own personality occasionally bordering on obnoxious in the extent to which they are willing to cooperate Modern Rolex watches tell a different story – their lives haven't yet been lived; instead they seek to be worn every day without much attention from their owners and by superb I mean the pinnacle of not only Swiss watchmaking Rolex was Apple before Apple was Apple: the focus on simple I'm sure I will – Rolexes just have a way of working their way onto your wrist I hope now those of you who have looked down on this true bastion of efficiency I began by saying that "Rolex is Rolex for a reason." Now you know much better what some of those reasons are For more information, visit Rolex.com Business News Rolex Will Raise U.S. Prices In Response To Tariffs Six Of The Coolest CPO Rolex Watches I Saw In London's Old Bond Street Rolex Boutique Reference Points The Cartier Tank Louis Introducing The Christopher Ward C12 'Loco' (Live Pics) Hands-On Tudor's Black Bay Pro Gets A Surprisingly Dramatic Facelift With An Opaline Dial Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders Complete digital access to quality analysis and expert insights complemented with our award-winning Weekend Print edition Terms & Conditions apply Discover all the plans currently available in your country See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times Many different chemicals and heat processes are used to prevent watch components corroding Some are recognised as potentially carcinogenic – many are poisonous.  Around 30 had to leave while both internal teams and Geneva firefighters made the workplace safe No one was injured and staff could re-enter after about a couple of hours Rolex doesn’t disclose its production figures but it’s guesstimated and widely accepted that the brand’s current capacity is around 1 million units per year That’s what’s coming out across its major facilities in Geneva (assembly and administrative) Plan-les-Ouates (cases and bracelets) and Chêne-Bourg (dials The company has finally commented on the new site as well as temporary ones The longterm investment is a $1 billion-plus facility in Bulle that is said to be about 1 million square feet (~100,000 square meters) It’s expected to create 2,000 new jobs — but it won’t be up and running until 2029 display cases sit awkwardly empty in Rolex boutiques and customers on long waitlists take their frustrations online So Rolex is also setting up temporary facilities for the short term Though still at the pre-construction phase there’ll be a site in Villaz-Saint-Pierre that will start operating in 2024 and production at a Romont facility is expected to start in 2025 Rolex’s statement: “The new production site in Bulle just like these three temporary installations will allow Rolex to expand its production capacity support growth and meet ever-increasing demand.” But production increases aren’t starting immediately and it’ll take time for watches to hit boutiques even once the temporary factories are in action the most sought-after Rolex models (steel sport watches) have been increasingly scarce for years It’s a situation that was exacerbated by production interruptions in 2020 The result has been that you either have to wait a long time (often years) or buy for much more than retail prices The highest secondhand prices have started to come down and new watches are That being said, the brand certainly benefits from high demand and Rolex watches will no doubt remain sought-after, so Rolex retail prices will continue to increase yearly But current market trajectory combined with a production increase should start correcting the current extreme imbalance and that’s welcome news for a lot of hungry watch fans Perhaps previously best known for the rare and desirable watched Rolex is hoping to expand production with a new Rolex factory in Bulle Official renderings have already been revealed with The Crown announcing their expansion back in 2022 And the images look almost as good as the brand’s iconic timepieces READ MORE! Sylvester Stallone owned the most complicated watch in the world and sold it for $5.4 million Rolex produced 1.24 million timepieces in 2023 – here are some of its most stunning timepieces for 2024 Its 2023 production amounted to 10.1 billion Swiss francs according to Bloomberg and  Morgan Stanley’s annual report Far further back in time, this classic watch was made and more recently rediscovered in the Mojave desert. the factory is projected to get cogs turning in 2029 The facility in Bulle, near Gruyère, Freiburg, has already received a building permit per the Feuille officielle du canton de Fribourg Rolex is one of the most integrated Swiss watch manufacturers – a company renowned for its luxury timepieces Its components are largely produced internally with 9,000 of its 14,000 entire workforce located in Switzerland it’s headquartered with watches developed and put together in Acacias Intricate movements are manufactured in Bienne and Cerachrom bezel inserts are produced in Plan-les-Ouates the brand’s gemmology and gem-setting take place in Chêne-Bourg The new location in Bulle will produce 20 percent of that work employing 2,000 workers across its four production buildings connected by a central building This means the factory equates to 100,000 square meters With being kinder to the climate firmly in mind Rolex is aiming to reduce its factory buildings’ energy consumption by 10 percent compared to a conventional building It hopes to attain the highest level of Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) certification – a first for a Swiss industrial building, per NZZ It will cost the luxury company upwards of one billion Swiss francs Rolex has built three temporary factories in Romont and Villaz-Saint-Pierre to amp up production before then A shift for the watch company specializing in rare timepieces, like one of the rarest Rolex watches in the world that sold for $3.5 million at auction it’s set to be a gradual shift to Bulle over six years London-based Amelia cut her journalistic teeth covering all things lifestyle Fast-forward a decade and the senior content writer and editor has put pen to paper for glossy magazines When her OOO is on from writing about cars and heading up on-site SEO you can find her spending quality time with her young family Open from Tuesdays to Fridays from 08:00 to 12:00 and 14:00 to 18:00 (local time)​ Barclays has been operating in Geneva since 1986 building on the best traditions of Swiss private banking combined with the global reach of Barclays Group Barclays is one of the world’s most financially stable and dependable banks It provides the strongest foundation for our Swiss business and a wealth of experience and knowledge for private clients private clients have been served from an office in Zurich Working closely with the Barclays Investment Banking division (based in Zurich since 2001) we bring the best of the Barclays Group to clients across multiple countries and jurisdictions Before creating wealth strategies to meet your needs we get to know you so we can fully understand your circumstances and ambitions who will draw on the skills of specialists from inside and outside the bank this highly experienced team will provide a comprehensive and personalised service Intermediaries and corporates are a particular focus and we provide a comprehensive service for local and internationally-based interests The Swiss team can manage the custody and execution of assets held in other Barclays jurisdictions including UK and Monaco We serve clients who can establish an investment portfolio of at least £5 million (or local currency equivalent) with us Our Geneva and Zurich opening hours are 09:00 to 18:00 (local time Our Verbier office is open from Tuesdays to Fridays from 08:00 to 12:00 and 14:00 to 18:00 (local time)​ Telephone lines available from 09:00 to 18:00 (local time Are client deposits protected under the deposit insurance esisuisse Please check with your local telecoms provider Calls are recorded in line with our legal and regulatory obligations This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page About us | Advertise with us | Contact us Posted: 5 August 2014 | | No comments yet CEVA is the acronym for the 16km-long Cornavin–Eaux-Vives–Annemasse rail link project connecting Switzerland and France It is a project stepped in history which dates back as long ago as 1850 citizen complaints and objections which went all the way to the Swiss Federal Administrative Court the project finally given the go-ahead and construction of the link got underway with a ground-breaking ceremony in November 2011 The project plays a crucial mobility role for the almost one million people living in the Greater Geneva agglomeration; it is seen as a much-needed link to improve mobility in Geneva and provide a cross-border connection to France Antoine Da Trindade – Managing Director for CEVA – provides more details about this project which is estimated to cost approximately CHF 1.5 billion (for the Swiss sections) and is expected to be finished by 2019… Antoine Da Trindade – Managing Director for CEVA Approximately 14km of the 16km-long railway link runs through Switzerland and 60% of the route will be underground requiring the construction of two tunnels and several cut-and-cover sections the line will enable passengers to cross Geneva in 20 minutes from the main station at Cornavin to Annemasse via Lancy-Pont Rouge The line will also form the core element of a Swiss-French railway network extending over 230km with 40 stations; 20 in Switzerland and 20 in France The infrastructure of CEVA is essential for a number of reasons First and foremost it will provide Geneva and its cross-border basin with a fast regional rail network (RER) particularly regarding sustainable development Other aspects and benefits of the project include: CEVA’s chosen alignment will serve approximately 240,000 people living within 500m of all five stations all five stations will have links to existing tram as TPG has redesigned its network to fit in with CEVA as part of its concept for improving mobility The plan is to run six trains per hour with a journey time of 20 minutes between Cornavin and Annemasse Three CEVA stations will be located in the middle of an urban development area: Lancy-Pont-Rouge the area includes the construction of more than 1,000 homes and public facilities with 130,000m2 for recreational activities and 30,000m2 for commerce additional real estate projects and developments will emerge within the immediate vicinity of other CEVA stations Lancy-Pont-Rouge and Carouge-Bachet stations are within the boundary of the big development project known as Praille-Acacias-Vernets (PAV) which will provide 14,000 homes and 15,000 jobs The CEVA route is divided into a number of sections work was carried out at Cornavin station to extend the platform Work then turned to the existing line going to the Praille goods yard where two stations will be located In the north is the Lancy-Pont-Rouge station (currently in service) which will be moved by a few hundred metres and will be expanded to accommodate the expected increased numbers of passengers To the south of Praille will be the new station of Carouge-Bachet It will be located at the level of the strategic junction of the southern entrance to Geneva and will form a traffic hub with connections to trams It will also provide a direct connection to Geneva Stadium the CEVA route passes beneath a hill at Pinchat through a tunnel approximately 2km-long The tunnel ends with a cut-and-cover section at the surface near the river Arve crossing it via a new bridge opened in 2012 the CEVA route will then enter a 2km-long tunnel driven through the cliff of an area known as the plane of Champel the 25m-deep Champel-Hôpital underground station will serve a very dense district of residential buildings and recreational areas as well as an underground corridor connecting the station directly to the university hospital of Geneva The tunnel’s cut-and-cover exit at Champel will provide a connection to the Eaux-Vives station the CEVA route will follow the existing route of the French railway network via a cut-and-cover tunnel previously running on the surface over a length of approximately 4km will free-up a strip of ground between Eaux-Vives and Foron which will be used to provide a route for pedestrians and cycle traffic the CEVA line rises to the surface just before the station of Annemasse This part of the project is managed by Réseau Ferré de France Construction work on the Champel and Eaux-Vives tunnel sections including excavation and concreting of each tunnel is expected to last approximately five years starting at Eaux-Vives station to the border rail technology installations and the outstanding works on the stations will be carried out over the last two and a half years The construction of such a large-scale infrastructure project in a dense urban environment creates a number of challenges that need to be faced including the construction of two tunnels in the middle of a city and keeping in mind at all times that people live close to construction areas plus the importance of planning building works in several phases to reduce their impact road sections and other areas where the project spans After graduating in Industrial Mechanics and Automatic Controls Antoine Da Trindade led several construction projects such as hydroelectric power plants or power stations Antoine joined the CEVA project as Managing Director , , No comments yet All subscriptions include online membership giving you access to the journal and exclusive content By By Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id" "a48dd50ac2f6a2378bfa56717a36504a" );document.getElementById("j0f0bb4fb4").setAttribute( "id" Write for us | Advertise with us Global Railway Review is published by: Russell Publishing Ltd.Court LodgeHogtrough HillBrasted © Russell Publishing Limited Website development by e-Motive Media Limited WATCHPRO Rolex has reportedly bought 100,000 square meters of land in Bulle and has plans to build a facility employing up to 2,000 people Rolex currently employs around 30,000 people The Swiss watchmaker has not confirmed news of the Bulle development, which was broken by state broadcaster RTS the Swiss canton that will house the new facility is optimistic that all administrative hurdles can be cleared to ensure the development goes ahead He described the Rolex plan as a “Project of a rare scale” Adding: “This significant investment will create very many jobs The project is on the right track and the Friborg authorities will do everything to ensure that it succeeds” RTS says that the new facility could be completed by 2029 There is no information on what Rolex plans to do with its Bulle facility but any additional capacity that leads to increased supply of finished watches will be a welcome relief for authorized dealers and their customers which have seen demand exceed supply by a wide margin for the past two years and I ha my brother Mr Luis Miguel Reis Nunes that is working for the past 12 year’s in the Rolex in Plans-Les-Oates Geneva and myself I have pass 10 years in Geneva working in the Restaurant Comedi as a suchefe There is something papal about the appointment of a new group president at Rolex except the process is arguably more secretive than the election of a new Pope We don’t even get a whisp of white smoke from a chimney when the decision has been made So it is only this week we learn that Nicolas Brunschwig was been elevated to the post of president for both Rolex SA and Rolex Holdings back in August Asked this morning whether it would share any additional information on the news a board member for Rolex since 2016 and a former trustee for the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation is now president of both Rolex SA in Geneva and its umbrella organisation Rolex Holding was seen as the steady hand on the tiller as Rolex was transformed over the past decade into the CHF 8 billion giant it is today Arguably his most significant intervention was the recruitment of Jean-Frédéric Dufour to the CEO’s role in 2015 Mr Brunschwig is among the most connected executives in Geneva Along with his long-standing association with Rolex he is also part of the dynastic Brunschwig family which founded Bon Génie in Switzerland in 1891 and now controls Bongénie-Grieder Switzerland’s biggest watchmaker is in rest and recuperation mode for 2021 Expectations were muted ahead of Rolex’s reveal of its 2021 watches at Watches and Wonders last month and the fact that exciting new Submariners and Oyster Perpetuals have only recently started feeding into retail all contributed to a deflated mood that an identikit Explorer II was unlikely to lift as he gauges reaction to this year’s Rolex novelties I was anticipating Rolex’s 2021 collection ahead of Watches and Wonders and offered this rather safe prediction: “It’s highly unlikely any of these new watches will rewrite the rubric.” Not because Rolex sent hurricane-level winds of change through its collection Rolex’s ‘new’ collection was social media catnip Parody accounts fell reliably into line by encouraging the faithful to spot the differences between old and new Explorer II models even Rolex insiders admitted they couldn’t see them As one leading retailer put it to me in the aftermath the Rolex brand is so strong that whatever it puts out ‘sells straight away’ a liposuctioned Explorer and a meteorite dial that upgrades the Daytona from a unicorn to a UFO watch push the feeling on Morgan Stanley released its annual Swiss watch industry report The report’s title was unequivocal: “King Rolex” Below the headline was the estimation that Rolex’s market share continued to grow during the pandemic one in every four dollars spent on a luxury wristwatch is now spent on a Rolex Morgan Stanley has Omega in second with 8.8 percent which grew its market share during the pandemic according to the bank’s research you still don’t have a business as big as Rolex’s who try to compartmentalise the watch industry’s direction of travel sustainability as a prerequisite to purchase genderless watches and the independents (they’re so much more interesting It doesn’t make watches out of recycled fishing nets it can’t for a moment be qualified alongside the quirky artisanal brands the term acts as a cover for The pandemic hit Rolex right between the eyes and without an ecomm business to sustain sales during lock downs To quote Morgan Stanley’s calculations again Rolex may have produced 190,000 fewer watches last year falling from a figure of one million to 810,000 a drop that knocked its bottom line back by an estimated CHF 780m (that’s a Tissot and a Montblanc Which begs the question – can Rolex return to pre-pandemic levels with a collection facelift even Dolly Parton wouldn’t pay for where Covid restrictions have already blighted this year’s trading Market research company Bain reckons China’s luxury goods market achieved almost 50 per cent growth in 2020 putting it on track to be the largest market for luxury by 2025 Factors behind the surge included the so-called repatriation of spend to China because of travel bans as well as the fillip caused by the relaxation of duties in the fast-rising Chinese retail destination of Hainan where Bain calculated sales were up by 98 per cent year-on-year but with several brands admitting more than half their business is now in the Middle Kingdom As Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign of 2012 showed Rolex’s soft collection update makes more sense the Explorer II won’t be a big seller in China while a movement upgrade should keep punters in traditional markets already married to the aesthetic happy Chinese consumers predisposed to smaller watch cases get steel and bi-colour 36mm Explorers shrunk by 3mm (and leaving the Cellini as Rolex’s only 39mm watch a breezy palm-motif 36mm Datejust and some high-tariff diamond-set pieces Brands ignore the US and major European markets at their peril A better explanation for this year’s direction would be that Rolex is keeping some of its powder dry as it did last year until the first wave of the pandemic waned and retail opened up again What is the point in a new Submariner or GMT Master II when half the world can’t shop Better to save them for when this is all over Watches and Wonders fell only seven short months after the new Kermit and a raft of Oyster Perpetual 36 models with coloured dials all of which prompted a buyer feeding frenzy If any brand has the luxury of biding its time Patek Philippe partially reopened its Geneva watchmaking facility this week Rolex says it will follow in the “near future” Rolex has not been making watches since March 16 when the Coronavirus pandemic forced it to close its Swiss watchmaking factories It was hoped, at the time, that the closure would last only ten days but 45 days later the manufacture remains mothballed hope that a measure of normality is about return with a statement from Rolex today saying it is taking steps to reopen “Our production sites are still closed for the moment but all security measures recommended by the government are currently being put in place for a gradual opening in the near future,” Rolex says Patek Philippe partially reopened its watchmaking facility this week Breitling returned to work last week There has been no update from Richemont or LVMH brands, and Swatch Group’s maisons are thought to have continued production in a limited capacity throughout the lock down Rolex’s closure for 45 days already represents over 12% of the current year’s manufacturing time lost to Covid-19 but government-recommended security measures at the facilities will mean reduced production capacity for many more weeks; possibly months Analysts estimate that Rolex made just over 1 million watches in 2019 a figure likely to drop to well under 900,000 in 2020 Rolex’s authorised dealers say they still have long waiting lists for the hottest steel sports models and the lengthy production shut down will do nothing to ease that situation Rolex also responded to a question about when or whether there would be new watches launched this year and was told there had been no further update yet They were due to be unveiled today because this would have been the preview day for the press at Baselworld 2020 I thought such a large online news producer would get something as simple as this right A figure of 1 million watches made in 2019 is grossly overstated None of the analysts I speak to gives a figure for Rolex’s annual production with complete certainty but the consensus of one million units in 2019 is agreed by both Morgan Stanley and Vontobel Robin Swithinbank looks to the past for clues about what Switzerland’s biggest watchmaker may unveil in April Guessing what Rolex will launch and discontinue this year is more than just an idle way to pass the hours in lock down; it can be as lucrative as studying the stock market or racing form because what the world’s biggest luxury watchmaker decides has a significant impact on secondary market prices for existing references (note the price rises before and since Patek Philippe confirmed it was nixing the 5711 for evidence) armed with little more than an encyclopedic knowledge of Rolex’s archive its recent product pipeline and wider trends in the watch industry Robin Swithinbank takes a punt at predicting what the brand will reveal in April If you’ve ever pondered Kierkegaard’s assertion that ‘life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards’ you could be forgiven for wondering whether he was actually considering the luxury Swiss watch industry’s novelty cycle – and particularly that of Rolex the industry’s use of the word ‘novelty’ is at best ironic so incrementally small are the visual steps forward most brands make each year Few laymen would have much idea Rolex actually makes ‘novel’ watches so unflinching is the great marque’s approach to its core forms when the brand takes part in its first Watches & Wonders and its first online watch fair it’s highly unlikely any of these new watches will rewrite the rubric they’ll be spins on past triumphs – backward looks doesn’t curtail the great annual guessing game has been preoccupying the watch-focused corners of the internet for some months already Rolex continues to keep an extraordinarily tight lid on its winter activities – so much one wonders if employee pillow talk isn’t somehow observed – leaving guessers with only one course of action This means no one in their right mind would call an all-new model Or manufactured with materials from the exotics box It also doesn’t stop us trying to articulate why Rolex’s product strategy still works – and seems to work better every year one of the big players in the bigger game of guessing individual watch brand annual turnover has just published its annual Swiss watch industry report That may be some way down on its 2019 estimate of CHF5.2bn – for obvious reasons – but it still casts Omega into a distant second on CHF1.75bn Morgan Stanley now believes Rolex to have 24.9 per cent market share together and you only just tip Rolex’s total Even in a pandemic and without an ecommerce business There isn’t one reason why the Rolex way works and we could list relatively tangible elements such as build-quality and design simplicity among them alongside the un-ignorable impact of decades of brilliant marketing the fundamental reason is more deep-rooted than any of those The emotional hold of nostalgia over a watch buyer is second to nothing in pushing people over the purchasing threshold Whether that was because your dad wore one I’d argue it’s been there since at least the mid-1990s when TAG Heuer dipped back into its archives and revived Monaco and Carrera it was almost as if Switzerland was saying we needn’t worry about the exponential pace of change now rewriting inherited social and fiscal codes The industry has been providing us with rose-tinted glasses ever since let’s apply the nostalgia theory to our low-level wager which points to this being the year of the Explorer II It’s exactly 50 years since the original Ref and because Rolex has previous with half-centuries a piece with a green aluminium bezel that marked the 50 years since the Sub’s introduction it was revived last year after a 10-year hiatus quickly joining the long list of waiting-list Rolex watches Less easy to predict is what Rolex might do with it the idea being that in the pitch black of a cave the watch would serve as a tool for determining day from night It’s highly unlikely Rolex would reduce the functionality of a Professional model so don’t expect the GMT function to clock out Explorer II is an out-and-out instrument watch Rolex has the sub-40mm category licked anyway keeping nostalgia in mind – is a retro spin on the look and the 24-hour scale on the bezel was less blocky – and far prettier – than on the current model I’d gladly see any or all of those details return reworked in Rolex’s suite of state-of-the-art materials Rolex will have to be careful adding a ceramic bezel or the online watch commentariat will call it a Chronomaster (that one’s for you What also seems likely is a movement upgrade Rolex’s next-generation calibres have been seeping through the collection since the first of them was introduced in 2015 a watch that’s due an update and that I can’t ever see being pulled altogether I’d like to think Rolex is sitting on a project to significantly up the Milgauss’s performance If Explorer II is as good a bet as there is what could follow behind it is a moment in the sun for the Perpetual movement And no prizes for guessing new dial colours after the success of last year’s Oyster Perpetual rainbow nor fresh material combinations or the odd smattering of precious stones Some guessers have called a ladies Submariner partly because there’s no precedent for it and partly because even if it did put out a 36mm Sub (already too small) and then there’s the concept of the unisex watch While Rolex can hardly be credited with driving the genderless watch bandwagon many of its designs have hurdled gender boundaries without so much as a stumble All this looking back-to-front is giving me misty eyes and a neck ache Sales at retail certain to have exceeded half a billion pounds for the first time as brand posts its best ever set of UK results the UK business responsible for distribution service and support for Rolex and Tudor in the UK and Ireland topped £329m in 2017; up from £268m in 2016 The turnover – which represents growth of 23% year-on-year – is based on the wholesale prices Rolex and Tudor’s authorised dealers pay the company Sales at retail are certain to have exceeded half a billion pounds for the first time from £22m in 2016 to £42m in the year ending December 31 as the brand reported its strongest ever set of financial results in the UK Such solid growth in sales and operating profit will be particular pleasing for the directors as both are regarded as “key” KPIs for the company They attributed the growth to “a combination of factors including in improvements in mix volume and a control on the growth of operating costs” Rolex UK ended the year with a net profit of £33.5m A dividend of £20m was paid to shareholders during the year along with an interim dividend of £25m for 2017 The final dividend paid during 2016 was £8m The directors stated that competitive pressure in the UK remained a “continuing risk” for the company but said it manages this by providing added value services to customers having fast response times in terms of product supply and handling customer queries and by maintaining strong relationships with customers The vast majority of Rolex UK’s sales naturally come from the UK market but analysis of turnover by geographical segment reveals that it did generate 2.5% of its revenue (£7.7m) from what it termed ‘Rest of Europe’ last year Rolex employed 191 employees in the UK as of the end of December staff costs rose from £10.9m to £11.2m in the year Rolex’s UK business is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rolex Holding SA and functions as part of the group’s distribution and and watch servicing operations Rolex has topped a list of the most reputable companies in the UK compiled by Reputation Institute The Swiss watchmaker also topped the global ranking in the 2018 RepTrack Report Rolex was one of only half of the top ten to improve its position More than of the top ten companies is different to last year In general across the top 100 companies listed in the RepTrack Report the trend has been for the strength of reputations to have dipped over the past 12 months ‘expressiveness’ has experienced the most noticeable decline across all other metrics since 2017 with consumers stating that companies do not communicate effectively or stand out from the crowd The brand Mia & Noa combines the big trends of the moment: Coffee to go without any contact when ordering and serving - and despite to-go completely without waste founder Maren Knief Clerc tells us how "radically consistent" can work Suggestions & comments to info@food-service.de